The Art Of Plating

We shift focus from the usual styling of gowns and shoes to a more unique alternative. Food stylist Sujata Sadr talks to us about what it all means to curate plateful of art.

L’Officiel India: When did you realize the growing market for food stylists?

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Sujata Sadr: I started this new chapter in my life working on the food page of a magazine with my childhood friend who was the editor at the time. It was all very exciting and I decided to take formal training from my mentor, food stylist, Indranie Dasgupta. It was when I was training under her that I was exposed to the potential of food styling as a career and the possibilities it held for me in my own journey.

L.I.: Did you ever feel that it was risky doing something so niche?

S.S.: It was a positive that it was so niche. For the longest time Indranie and I were the only two professional food stylists in Delhi. So it certainly gave us an edge.

L.I.: What was your learning in the initial days of choosing this career?

S.S.: Learning from and assisting an established stylist opens a lot of doors for you, and helps you put that first foot forward. But it’s an uphill task from there, with new challenges on each shoot.

L.I.: Talk us through your favourite project. We know how a fashion stylist works, even a hair stylist. We’re curious to know the process of a food stylist.

S.S.: It is pretty much the same. We are given a brief that has to be implemented, in terms of creating the right mood for the shot. It starts with a lot of research on the cuisine, and recipes for the dishes that we are shooting after which comes the running around to procure just the right props. They may be traditional textiles, painted backgrounds, crockery and cutlery. One could spend an entire day looking for just the right spoons for one shot. So there are many layers of carefully thought out elements that come together to form a photograph. One of my favourite projects was working on the Kohinoor shoot on the different rice dishes of the world.

L.I.: With more restaurant chains coming into India and many local chains expanding nationwide, the concept of food styling doesn’t seem like it’s going anywhere. But what do you think will happen ten years from now?

S.S.: The trend might shift completely from todays’ carefully orchestrated photographs to more real ones.

L.I.: Is there a lot of good food to be eaten as a food stylist? Tell us the perks. Also tell us the downsides.

S.S.: Unfortunately not, a lot of the food is handled way too much for me to want to eat it. The perks for me is the satisfaction one gets working with some of the best creative people in the business and obviously the joy of being constantly surrounded by food.

L.I.: What is your top dish to style and how would you style it? What’s one dish you still haven’t had the chance to style but would love to some day?

S.S.: It’s more about getting your hands on really beautiful and fresh ingredients to work with. They could be humble ingredients from someone’s garden or really exotic produce that one doesn't get to see everyday. That is really exciting to me.

L.I.: A typical meal at home- a gourmet presentation or no?

S.S.: Not at all gourmet presentation for everyday meals. But it’s hard not to tweak stuff, with a flower or a garnish, before it ends up on the table.

L.I.: As a fashion stylist, the last thing one wants to do is have to go shop for himself or herself. Since we do that for a living anyway, for other people. As a food stylist do you have any such problems? Is there a particular food item that you’ve been put off by or perhaps cooking in its entirety is something you don’t want to have to do anymore?

S.S.: Not at all. I love shopping for food. Going to the sabzi mandi is especially a treat! It's hard to stay away from good food as I have a fully gourmet family!